How We Treat Skin Cancer

Your case is unique, which means your treatment plan will be designed around you and your needs. Every week, a team of specialists meets to discuss current cancer cases and collaborate on the best treatment for each patient. You benefit from the combined expertise of specialists in radiology, surgery, pathology, pharmacology, oncology and therapists in fields like physical therapy and psychology.

Your recommended treatment will be based on best practices that have worked for other patients, specific aspects of your cancer/tumor, the results of all your tests, the stage of your cancer and your personal preferences.

Skin cancers are typically treated through a combination of procedures, such as surgery, immunotherapy and targeted therapy.

Surgery is the most common way to treat skin cancer. Your doctor will decide on the best surgical treatment based on the type, stage, size and location of your cancer. You may also need surgery to see if the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes, which could require other types of treatment after surgery. Doctors who do surgery for skin cancer include dermatologists, general surgeons, plastic surgeons and cancer surgeons.

Immunotherapy is used to treat advanced melanoma or melanoma that is at high risk of coming back. This treatment uses specific medicines to help your own immune system to recognize and destroy cancer cells. These medicines can be in the form of pills or injections or given through an IV.

Targeted therapy drugs target the parts of cancer cells that make them unlike normal cells. Approximately half of all melanomas are due to abnormalities in the BRAF protein gene. In targeted therapy, specific medicines target the BRAF gene without affecting most normal, healthy cells.

Targeted therapy drugs are different from standard chemotherapy medicines and may work when chemotherapy medicines don’t, often with less severe side effects.

Chemotherapy and infusion therapy use powerful medicines to kill cancer cells all through the body. Chemotherapy is sometimes used to treat advanced melanoma or lessen symptoms. For nonmelanoma skin cancer, chemotherapy is applied as a cream or ointment or delivered through an IV. Chemotherapy may be combined with other immunotherapy drugs.

Radiation therapy uses high-energy X-rays to kill cancer cells. This treatment is used primarily for nonmelanoma skin cancers in the form of electron beam radiation that goes only skin-deep. Radiation is not commonly used to treat melanoma, but may be used to kill cancer cells that remain on the lymph nodes after surgery, treat recurring melanoma, treat tumors in other areas of the body and relieve symptoms.

Our facilities do not discriminate against any person on the basis of race, color, national origin, disability, or age in admission or access to, or treatment or employment in, its programs, services or activities, or on the basis of sex (gender) in health programs and activities. Read the full notice: Saint Joseph Hospital Notice of Nondiscrimination